Peggy
by AngelShep
Summary: Challenge: Peggy was loved by two men in her life. She was Steve's lost love. And she was Tony's... mother in every way but blood.


**Hi! This is a challenge from **Phoenix's Moon**. I have to say I was so inspired, I had to cut some scenes, but you can imagine them I think with the few I kept. Hope you'll like it!**

*Tony always thought as Peggy as his true mother- from the day he found himself spilling out his life to a stranger at one of his father's galas to the moment she died.*

**Disclaimer: Not mine. It's sad. **

* * *

**Peggy**

Tony looked down at his feet, kicking the air, not for the first time wondering why his father even wanted him there. After introducing him to a couple of people, to whom Tony forgot their names within ten minutes, he had told him to go sit on a chair by a corner and to make sure to stay there. He had done so because he wanted to make his father happy but two hours later (he knew, he counted the seconds ticking by), he was bored and just wanted to go home.

Moreover, the clothes his mother had made him wear were scratching him and were uncomfortable. His hair was too combed carefully to the side and the itch to move his fingers through them was burning him but his mom had said it was important he looked good for his dad. He didn't want to disappoint them.

He sighed and sagged against the back of the chair, looking around at the people talking and dancing to the slow music from the violins and other instruments he could see on the other side of the room. The few people who had seen him had smiled at him as if he was a baby and pinched his cheek, saying he was "cute". He didn't like how they looked at him as if he was just a child who couldn't understand what they were saying. It wasn't true.

"Hello. Is this seat taken?"

He looked up at the voice and saw a pretty woman with brown hair up in a bun and a long blue dress. She was smiling at him, her eyes sparkling in the white light of the room. She was different. He could tell immediately. Most people hadn't asked him if he wanted them around when they came and they didn't smile like that woman did.

He shook his head and she thanked him before seating down next to him. "Oh!" she let out in relief before leaning down to grab her shoes. She took them off and rolled her eyes in amusement. "Those shoes are a very deadly weapon, I can assure you. I can't feel my feet anymore."

He chuckled and she grinned, leaning back on the chair, her shoes forgotten on the floor by her feet. He looked down and played with his fingers, wondering if he should say something. Would his dad be mad if he talked with her?

"Are you alright?"

His eyes snapped up and he saw her giving him a worried look, brows furrowed, head tilted to the side to see his face better. "I… I wanna go home."

Her eyes softened and she reached out with a hand to slide her fingers in the hair around his ear. She turned a bit more towards him and let her arm clasp around his shoulders bringing him to her. "My poor boy. I know. These things are awful. They're barely a place for people like me, never mind for children."

"But dad… He wanted me here!" Tony protested. He had to make this nice lady understand. "He said it was important for people to see me. And my dad is always right!"

She looked pained for a second. She frowned, looking back before kneeling in front of him, her hands cupping his cheeks. "Your dad can be wrong, he is human. Are you having fun tonight? Don't you wish you were elsewhere?"

He looked down at his hands, ashamed to admit he did. "I don't want to make dad disappointed. I want him to be happy with me," he whispered, picking at the edge of the 'vest' as his mom called it.

"Why don't you come with me?" he shook his head, his dad wouldn't be happy if he left with a stranger. "I'm a friend of your father. My name is Peggy. He won't be angry, Tony."

He bit his lip, wanting so badly to go somewhere else, but so unsure about it. He wanted to believe her when she said he wouldn't be angry but… what if she was wrong? What if his dad got angry with him because he didn't stay where he was supposed to?

"Tony, we're not going far. We will simply go the balcony over there," she indicated on their left. Sure enough there was a small balcony and well there, technically he wouldn't be leaving, right? He couldn't go anywhere else from the balcony. Chewing on his lip he looked between the opened doors, the lady Peggy and his dad who was standing facing him, but talking with other men. "I'm sure some fresh air will be good for you." He looked back at her and she smiled softly at him, the way his mom sometimes did when he was too shy around people his dad invited home.

Finally he nodded, though reluctantly and grabbed the hand she was holding out for him. He followed her, glancing back at the two lonely chairs with the pair of forgotten shoes.

The fresh air hit his face, cool in this night of May. He watched the city lights bright in the dark, those of the cars moving around. The moon and stars were shining far above them, in the cloudless sky. Peggy let go of his hand when they reached the edge and he put his hands on top of the balustrade, trying to pull himself up so he could admire the view.

"Wait… Here let me help you." She closed her arms around his waist and held him up, before letting him stand on the balustrade – not letting go though. He smiled as he looked around, leaning back on Peggy as she ran her fingers through his hair, her own head against his shoulder. "Do you mind staying here with me?"

He glanced back at her and shook his head. He then sat, cross-legged on the balustrade, Peggy's arms never leaving his body. He let his head fall back against her and closed his eyes, listening to her breathing. "Thank you, miss Peggy."

She kissed the top of his head. "You're welcome, Tony."

~~{}~~

Tony ran down the stairs with a grin on his face. He crossed the hall and ran into the living room to jump at Peggy, holding her tightly. She laughed and closed her own arms around him. "Hello to you too, big boy," she said, chuckling.

He looked up at her, without letting go. "Hello Peggy!" He grabbed her hand then and dragged her out of the room, ignoring the shake of Jarvis' head as he watched them leave fondly. Peggy laughed while following him, smiling brightly at him, never once telling him to stop.

He guided her upstairs and to his room where he stopped in front of the closed door. He turned around and crossed his arms, moving his chin up and taking on a very serious expression. She looked at him with very attentive eyes and clasped her hands in front of her, over her white long skirt. Her brown hair was loose around her face and she wore a simple blue shirt with short sleeves. "You are about to see something extraordinaire but you can't tell anyone, Peggy," he stated with a firm voice.

She nodded very seriously. "I won't betray this secret, mister Stark."

He pursed his lips before acquiescing, satisfied. He opened the door and stepped inside, waiting for her to come in before closing the door very carefully. He walked around Peggy and went to his desk which was covered with tools and half-finished machines. He climbed on his chair and closed his hands around the only one which was complete and sitting away from the edge. He held it close to his chest and slid down the chair. He walked towards Peggy and sat down on the ground. She imitated him, sitting graciously next to him, looking at the machine in his arms with curious eyes.

He bit his lip and put on the ground in front of him. "I… This is a dog," he said proudly.

She raised an eyebrow and looked more closely. Tony watched her, wondering if she would be angry at him. He knew it didn't look like much of one. For starters, it was a machine – there were no blood, no bones, no hair. And its movements were jerky and unlike dogs', but he tried his best with the little tools he had. And it didn't have ears because he hadn't found anything to make them yet.

"Tony," Peggy started, voice hesitant and tone uncertain. He looked down, shoulders slumping. He did something wrong again. He always did things wrong. "If you wanted a dog, why didn't you ask your parents? I'm sure they…"

He shook his head. "Dad said no. He said dogs were for little boys. He said I wasn't a little boy anymore." He blinked back tears as he looked at the small dog he made. Because his father couldn't say anything if you didn't have to give it food and to make it go outside, right? It wasn't the same as a real dog, so his dad would be okay with it. Little boys didn't make dogs. Big boys did and he was one.

"Oh Tony." She closed her arms around his waist and brought him towards her, putting her head on top of his. Her thumb slowly rubbed circles on his chest, soothing and gentle.

"It can bark. And move and jump. And his tail can move just like a real dog's." He reached for it and touched a small button on its belly side. Immediately it began moving its tail up and down before turning its head towards them and barking once to greet them. Then it started running around them, barking and moving its tail happily.

Peggy laughed as she watched with bright eyes Tony's creation. Tony closed his eyes and buried his head in her chest, closing his arms around her waist. He was so happy she was there. He had missed her so much since she came for his tenth birthday three months ago. He knew she couldn't be there all the time because she had her own work to do but… he just missed her so much. It just wasn't the same when she was around.

Her hand rubbed his back and she played with his hair with the other. "It's incredible Tony."

"It doesn't have ears yet," he said, voice muffled. She moved back just enough to be able to see his face. He made a face at her and repeated: "It doesn't have ears yet."

Suddenly there was a noise coming from the desk and they both turned their head to see the dog repeatedly hit his head on the wood. Tony's eyes widened and he scrambled to his feet. By the time he reached it, half the dog's head was smashed and its movements have become even jerkier than before.

Tony deactivated it, sinking to his knees and pulling it onto his lap. He looked down at the destroyed head and felt new tears threatening to fall. "I can't make anything right."

He felt strong, warm and comforting arms around him and his face was pulled to Peggy's chest. He let go and cried, wrapping his own arms around her. The only sound apart from his sobs was Peggy's voice, reassuring him it would be alright.

~~{}~~

Tony struggled with the handle of the door, perching his books and tools on his arms and chest, so that he could pushed it down with his elbow. He sighed in relief when the door opened and pushed it with his foot, before finally entering his room. He walked to his bed and let everything fall out of his arms and on it.

He breathed out and ran a hand over his face and in his hair, making it even messier than it already was. He bent down and started tidying it up, separating the books from the tools and little machines he created while bored in class. He sat down and closed his eyes briefly.

A knock on the door made him look up. Who could possibly be there to see him? He had been in MIT for three months now and the only one who really talked to him was Rhodey (but they had known each other for a month tops, it wasn't enough yet to call them friends – not that he would know what friends are since he'd never had one). He got up and walked to the door. He opened it and immediately his face split into a smile. "Peggy!" he stepped forward and closed his arms around her.

She chuckled but held him close. "I miss you too, ducky."

He let go of her and got out of the doorway so she could come in. She looked around, eyes shining with amusement and tenderness. She took in the bed on which books and tools were still lying on, in the desk, which seemed to be covered by hundreds of paper and pens and pencils, the machines and other creations Tony had put on the side, not quite knowing what to do with them in such a little place. The walls were covered by papers and blueprints, but Peggy noticed the one photography over the pillow on the bed. It was one they took this summer, before Tony left for MIT. The both of them were smiling at the camera, Peggy's arms around his shoulders, their heads touching and Tony's hands over hers. It was a simple moment they had had, immortalized forever.

"It's cozy."

"It's lonely," he countered, sitting down on the bed, pushing everything else so she could have some place. She sat next to him and slid her arm around his shoulders.

"Tell me all about MIT. How are your teachers, your classes? Did you make friends? Have you learned anything? Build something new?" She pressed, a smile on her face.

He shrugged. "The classes are fine, but I'm bored in most of them cause they're pretty easy. The teachers don't like me at all. They think I'm an idiot and a kid, and when I noticed a mistake, they're even more unhappy with me and I don't… I don't understand why. I learned new things though. Mostly in chemistry cause that's where I'm not all that good. I'm bored all the time though so I made a lot of new things and I have many blueprints already done, I just need the stuff to make them. Right now I'm working on a new computer because they're way too slow and big and I can't work on them."

He took a breath and looked at Peggy's smiling and warm eyes which were on him and only him. It felt so right. There were so little people that seemed to actually care about him. "I thought about something, I mean, I see things in 3D and I don't find it fair that I can't have them in 3D before they're complete. I can't have all the perspective so I thought later I would do something, like holograms! That way I will be able to see all of it for real and not just in my head." Her fingers brushed the hair behind his ear. "There would be holograms all around the place!"

"I wouldn't want to miss it Tony."

He grinned and went back to talking. "I have a friend – almost one. His name is Rhodey. Well no, it's not but he's fine with it. I like him and he's nice." He turned his head to her. "I missed you Peggy."

She smiled at him, tilting her head to the side. "So did I." She got up and held out her hand. "We should get out and eat something. I saw this little place not far from here."

He grabbed her hand and stood up. "Let me take some money and…"

"My treat. Come on, little duck."

She put her arm around his shoulders and guided him to the door. He just grinned and leaned into her. He loved Peggy.

~~{}~~

It was a rainy day. It felt cliché, like the scene in every single movie. People were already gone, back to their home or to the ceremony held at the Stark Mansion. All false smiles and empty condolences, fake tears lost in the water falling from the dark grey clouds in the sky.

Tony still stood in front of the two freshly made tombs, which bore the name Stark. The suit he was wearing was clinging to his skin, completely soaked after so long of a time under the rain without any umbrella. He didn't cry. Not when he learned, not after, not now while he just stared at the graves that held his parents' bodies. He wasn't sure he would cry later on. Probably not.

Was he sad? Yes, yes he was. They were his parents. His father may have been distant and an ass at times and his mother may have not been there all the time when he needed her, too submissive to her husband to go against him, but he still loved them both. He would miss them, he would miss coming home to see his mother smiling at him from the couch where she would sit to read peacefully, he would miss coming home to see his father in his office going over contracts, or in his workshop, building new weapons.

Hands on his arms made him turn his head to look at the one person who was still there. Her eyes were soft and comforting, understanding. Her hair was drenched and clang to the skin of her face. Her black dress and black coat were soaked as well, though less than his own clothes. "You will catch a cold if you stay here, Tony."

He closed his eyes and leaned forward, their foreheads touching. "I can't go to… I can't."

She squeezed his arms, making him turn so he was completely facing her. "I know, I know, ducky."

He clenched his fists by his sides. "I just… I can't take any more fake. Everything is always so… fake," he whispered. He was aware his voice was shaking but he didn't care. It was just him and Peggy. Peggy wouldn't judge him. She knew him, she loved him.

"Shhh…" She kissed his cheek and took him in his arms. He put his face in her neck and breathed in deeply, squeezing his eyes shut not to cry. He didn't want to cry. "It's okay. Everything will be alright, you'll see."

"Don't leave." _Me_ was unspoken. He wrapped his arms even more tightly around her.

"I'm here. Don't worry, Tony. I'm not going anywhere."

He didn't know how long they stood there, wrapped like this, under the rain. It didn't matter. All he knew was that she was there, warm and tangible and she _cared_ and he loved her. She was everything he missed when his own mother would smile at him and tell him she loved him. She was _his_ mother, more than his biological one ever was. And it was unfair because his mom had just died and he was standing in front of her grave. He felt so much guilt for thinking this when he should be mourning and crying her loss, even more so when he thought if _Peggy_ had been the one who died, he _would_ have cried.

When they finally moved, it was to Peggy's car. She drove quietly, going in the opposite direction of the Stark Mansion, for which he was grateful. He stared out of the window, not seeing anything, his mind blank as he thought about what he would do now. Take over Stark Industries? It was what everyone expected him to do. Continue with his father's legacy. Offer his genius to America, to help their fellow soldiers out there. To protect them and save them. He wanted to do that. He wanted to help them. He just didn't know how he could do that without taking over Stark Industries and continuing with his father's work.

The car came to a stop in front of a small house he knew well for having spent time there during his childhood. He smiled softly at Peggy. "You're staying?"

"Of course I am. I wouldn't miss Jarvis' cooking for anything in the world."

They both got out and walked to the door, which opened before they even reached it, as if the man knew they were coming. He probably did. Jarvis smiled when he saw him before stepping forward to wrap him in a hug, without saying a word.

It was so much better than all the fake smiles and fake condolences he got since the morning.

~~{}~~

As he sat that night on his bed, he finally registered everything that happened during the day and even before. It just came all crashing down onto him and overwhelmed him in such a way it left him gasping for breath as he fell off the bed, eyes closed shut tightly, knees drawn to his chest to protect the one thing he needed, he was _dependant_ on right now, as his fingers clang at it desperately – the reactor, which was there, safely tucked into its casing, keeping the shrapnel at bay. He was safe. He was alive.

Pepper was alive and at her home, safe. Obadiah wouldn't hurt her anymore, wouldn't hurt him anymore.

He was gone.

_God_ Obadiah had tried to kill him. After all this time, all those years, all those times he told him how glad he was to have him, to have that second father, his _godfather_ and he tried to kill him. Twice. Or well three times. He couldn't… How could he… Why… He didn't understand. Was power so important to Obie – Obadiah – that he needed to kill _him_ so damn much?

"Jarvis?" he called out. He needed someone – he needed to know he wasn't – that there was someone who still cared. That _he_ wasn't the problem. "Call Peggy. Please."

His AI didn't answer but the dialing tone filled the room instead. He didn't have to wait long. On the third beep, Peggy picked up: "Hello?"

"Peggy?" He was aware of how dull and low his voice was – like it was broken somehow, just like he felt.

"Tony? Oh my God, are you alright? You sound – is there something wrong?" The panic in her voice was reassuring and unsettling at the same time. Panic and worry meant she must care, she had to, he couldn't take it if someone else betrayed him. And unsettling because he didn't want to make her panic. He never wanted to make Peggy worry about him.

"I… It's… Obi– Obadiah, he…" His voice broke and he took a deep breath (as deep as he could with the reactor). "He was the one who ordered the hit. I… He wanted me dead, Peggy. He tried to kill me. He tried to–" He couldn't talk anymore. His voice wasn't responding, his breathing wouldn't slow down for a second, and he felt like crying and he hadn't cried in years. He couldn't cried. Not for Obi–Obadiah.

"Bloody hell, curse that–" She started before stopping. "Tony listen to me." Her voice was soft and calm, but commanding. "Is there anyone with you?"

"No. Just… Just Jarvis and Dummy, You and Butterfingers. I told Pepper to go home. Obi–Obadiah tried to kill her too. And oh God, Peggy, it's just so fucked up."

He choked on the sobs he was holding back. He was aware he was completely breaking down and he desperately needed a drink but he couldn't. He knew it wouldn't make it go away. In the morning, the pain would be back and he would just feel worse.

"He tried to– Okay. Ducky, _listen_. Please." Her voice had a desperate edge to it. A tear ran down his cheek, followed by another. He closed his eyes. "Ducky, you know I love you, alright? Don't think about him. I'm taking a plane and I'm coming Tony. You hear me?"

He nodded vaguely. "I do. I love you too, Peggy." He was crying now. He didn't cry for his parents and here he was crying for Obie. But he– he remembered him taking him outside, showing him how to play baseball and giving him his first lesson in driving. He remembered Obie taking him to bed when his father was passed out drunk on the couch. He just wanted to be able to push all those memories out, to only remember Obie as the man who ordered a hit on him, who filled an injunction against him, who ripped his heart out of him, who tried to kill Pepper and then to kill him when he stood in his way.

This was the man he wanted to remember so he wouldn't grieve him, or cry for him, so he could hate him without problem.

"You will be alright, ducky, you will be." He needed her so much. He was such a mess and he just needed her right now. "Tony, call Rhodey. Tell him to come."

"No, I don't… he doesn't…" he protested. He didn't want to drag anyone else into this mess. He didn't want Rhodey to see him like this.

"Call him or I will, Tony. It's not an option. I don't want you alone right now." She sighed and he could swear her voice was trembling despite the firm edge she was forcing into it. "Please, do it for me, little duck."

He sucked in a breath, trying to calm at least enough to answer. To reassure her. He didn't want her to worry. "Okay. I'll call."

"You better. I will check in half an hour by calling him." He smiled slightly because it was so her. "I love you Tony."

"I know."

The conversation ended and Tony closed his eyes. He didn't know what he would do if he hadn't had her in his life.

~~{}~~

Tony looked around him, without really noticing anything. There wasn't much to see anyway. The house was half-destroyed from that stupid birthday party he threw only to get drunk. Dying was hardly an excuse. It was him. He was the problem. He walked stiffly to what was left of the couch and sat down heavily, sighing to himself. He closed his eyes and left his mind wander back over the last few days.

First Vanko and Monaco which annihilated all his hard work to take the government off his back about the suits, then his birthday party which was followed by that little stunt of one agent Natalie Rushman or Natasha Romanoff – whatever her name was, he didn't give a damn. Finally SHIELD invading the place and grounding him like he was a kid in need of a babysitter. For what? So he could go into his father's work and discover two things: one, his father had saved his life without knowing thanks to his stupid element; two, he… loved him in his own sort of twisted way (who said their child was their greatest creation in their right mind?). Then the whole Expo disaster. God, what did his life turn into?

The only good thing out of it all that came out good was Pepper. His lips curled into a smile at the thought. He hardly believed it. After everything he put her through, not just those last few days, but even before that, during all those years… How come he was so lucky?

"You seem happy; something I am pleased to see, though I can hardly understand when I look around and see what you've done to your house."

His eyes snapped open and he turned to look at the person who came in without Jarvis telling him. Peggy stood there, as beautiful as ever, despite her white hair, her wrinkled face (half of those were from laughing too much in her life), and her slightly hunched posture.

He got up and walked to her before wrapping his arms around her. She held him back and chuckled slightly. "I kind of was dying," he whispered, apologetically.

She froze and pushed him away at arm's length, looking him up and down. Worried eyes linked with his and her lips set into a frown. "Dying?"

"I… It's a long story. But I'm fine now, Peggy."

"Well I'm not going anywhere any time soon. I have plenty of time to hear whatever it is you have to say." She gave him a look and he sighed before taking her arm and guiding her to the couch.

They both sat down, Peggy taking one of his hands between hers. He half-smiled before closing his eyes, shoulders dropping. "I just… The palladium in the reactor was poisoning me. But I'm fine now, I… I found a new one, that's safe."

"Why is the house like this?" she wondered, moving her head forward to try and look in his eyes.

"I… I may have… I was just… I thought I was going to die and… I got drunk, I didn't care at all about what people would think because I thought I would be dead the next day and… I put on the suit and Rhodey put on another one and we fought and…" He gestured around him at the destruction.

She put a hand over his cheek and smiled softly at him. "As reckless as ever, ducky. Why would you do that?"

"I just… I just wanted to make it easier for everyone. If they were angry at me, I…" He shook his head. He knew it was stupid thinking, but at the time he was just resigned and desperate. He thought he was making it easier for everyone. Rhodey had the suit for the army, Pepper had the company, everything else was split between Happy, Rhodey and Pepper.

"Tony…" Peggy sighed, squeezing his hand.

"Dad… Dad left a… a video." He looked down at their hands and frowned. "He said… he said he loved – well, no. He said I was his greatest creation."

Peggy let go of his hand and took his face between her hands. She brought him closer to her until their foreheads touched. Tony closed his eyes and breathed in deeply, inhaling her lemon shampoo perfume and natural sweet odor. "He loved you, Tony. Never doubt that."

"He could have just said it." Was it too much to ask for? For his father to tell him he loved him. He sighed but brightened the second after that, thinking about something else – someone else. "I kissed Pepper."

She recoiled in surprise. "You did what?"

He smiled sheepishly. "I kissed Pepper. And she kissed back. I didn't force her or anything," he added quickly, not wanting her to get the wrong idea. "I… I think we're together." He smiled softly and shrugged.

She chuckled and kissed his cheek. "I'm so happy for you, little duck. You and Pepper are made to be together." She held him, putting an arm around his shoulders and letting her head fall against his chest.

He wrapped his arms around her and kissed her temple softly. He never was so grateful for her.

~~{}~~

Tony looked down at his feet, slightly tugging at the human-shaped hole in the ground. He had a glass in his hand, still full – he had yet to touch it. Pepper had been there just a few hours ago before making her way back to Washington (which she had ditched after seeing him fall from the portal). Now reassured he was alright and well and on his feet, she agreed to go back.

He was thinking about who he will have to contact, the money he will have to send for the repairs of the city, his mind kept going back on the events of the day before. Aliens, gods, _magic_. It was so much to take in.

Just as much as the fact that he was suddenly a part in a crazy team of so called superheroes that had to be hit by a God even crazier to be able to work together. He wasn't really surprised, when he realized who was on the team (him included and maybe… first), he knew something big was needed. He just never thought it would be Coulson's death.

Arms wrapped around him startled him out of his thoughts and his fingers slipped, his glass falling to crash to the ground, exploding in million of pieces. He looked down at the hands encircling his waist and smiled a little when he recognized the wrinkles on the pale hands. "Peggy?"

"Never, ever, ever pull such a stunt. Do you hear me, ducky? _Never_."

He slipped his fingers between hers to be able to move and turn around, holding her hands in his. She was glaring at him but he could see the deep-rooted relief and happiness in those eyes. She was fighting back a smile as well and that was more than enough to him. "Loud and clear, Peggy."

The noise they both heard from the elevator made him remember there were guests in the Tower. Four of them at least until they went back to SHIELD and wherever they went or lived.

He looked up as Peggy turned around and felt dread hit him. Steve Rogers. Of all people, it had to be him. Peggy gasped, her hand coming up to her mouth. And suddenly what he had been afraid of became something that could be true, be real. Peggy leaving him. Realizing she could find someone better than him. Someone like Steve Rogers. Her long lost love.

"Steve… it's you. It's actually you."

Steve froze, his eyes falling on her, taking her in, realizing who she was. And Tony felt completely left out, as if they didn't realize he was still standing right there. Then he realized he wasn't alone and Clint, Natasha and Bruce were there as well, standing behind Steve. Were they all going to talk to him before they saw Peggy? Were they leaving?

"Peggy?" Steve's voice drifted to them, full of wonder and amazement and _joy_. He walked forward, meeting her, only to look at her face, not missing anything – her eyes, her nose, her cheekbones, her forehead, her lips, her chin – before taking her into his arms. "You're as beautiful as I remember."

Tony rolled his eyes. Of course. He wasn't even surprised Steve was playing the charming and gentleman card. Peggy chuckled and let him go. "You're a charmer, but you're not as good as this young man." She pointed at him and Steve's eyebrows rose.

Clint scoffed. "Sure, Stark the charmer."

"You two… know each other?" Steve wondered, looking between the both of them. Tony shrugged and crossed his arms. He moved his foot back only to end up wincing when it hit something sharp that pierced his skin.

The glass.

He looked down and made a face, stepping around the broken pieces and cursing himself for walking around barefoot. He walked to the bar and grabbed his foot to remove the piece of glass. A trail of blood had followed him and he really wasn't happy about that – as if he didn't have enough reparations and other things to do, he was handicapping himself by cutting deep his foot.

A frail hand grabbed his hand before he could remove the piece though and he looked up at Peggy who was frowning. "You'll never change really. How many times did I tell you not to remove anything without precautions, especially when it's so deep?"

He sighed and bit the inside of his cheek. He looked up at her and smiled cheekily. "A thousand times?"

She shook her head fondly and disapprovingly. "Sit. Where's the first-aid kit?"

"Under the bar, third cupboard." He sat diligently on a stool and watched her as she moved at ease around the bar and disappeared behind it to retrieve the kit in question. He noticed out of the corner of his eye the others coming closer and their puzzled and flabbergasted look. "It's fine, Peggy."

"I do remember a screwdriver incident and a 'fine' comment." She gave him a look as she walked back to him. She settled in the stool next to him and put the kit on the bar, opening it. "We've met when he was five. One of his father's stupid galas."

"Technically that's when I learned your name. We've met when I was a few months old. You bought me a little stuffed duck and gave it to me when I was in my crib."

She looked surprised before shaking her head and smiling fondly. "Of course you would remember. You named it Duduck if I remember well."

He frowned, going back into his memories. "Right. I was just thirteen or fourteen months old." He raised an eyebrow. "What happened to it? I mean I remember having it and then… it just disappeared."

Peggy sighed as she took bandages, thread, needle and disinfectant. "When I visited one day, you were in your father's workshop and…"

"I forgot it. When I came back it was gone." He made a face when she pulled out the piece of glass to put a compress on it immediately, slowing the blood flow.

"Howard found it." She started stitching up the cut. The others were completely bewildered as they listened to the conversation and looked at the scene where both seemed so at ease with one another, trusting the other completely, a deep connection between them. "I found him later on throwing it in the fireplace. He never quite liked that duck."

Tony pursed his lips. "He never did, yeah." Peggy cut the thread and grabbed the bandages.

"Don't walk barefoot."

"You're the one that made me let go of the glass," he pointed out. She just raised her eyebrows while finishing her task. "I know," he sighed, knowing that look. It was the one that said 'Stop drinking or I will make you regret it'.

"Sooo…" Clint drawled out suddenly, breaking the moment. They both turned their heads to him and Tony realized then that he stole Peggy away from Steve, who was seeing the woman he was in love with when he went under for the first time since he woke up. The guilt assaulted him hard and he bit his lip, looking away from the Captain. "You really _do_ know each other well."

Peggy nodded and smiled. "I saw this boy grow up. He's the closest thing I have to a son."

Tony's head snapped to her as he opened his mouth to say something. Only to close it again, too baffled and overwhelmed to say anything. Peggy turned to him and smiled shyly. She had never said it before. It was something unspoken between them. He was aware of it even though he didn't necessarily believe it all the time, just as much as she was aware she was like a mother to him.

The others left, knowing this was a too intimate moment for them to witness. "Peggy…"

"It is true, Tony. You are like a son to me." She walked to him and cupped his face, her smile wide and genuine, her eyes bright and sincere, love shining from her face.

He blinked and wrapped his arms around her waist, leaning forward until his head rested just above her chest. He closed his eyes and breathed out, just bathing in her presence. "You're a mom to me, Peggy," he whispered.

She put her head on top of his. "I know, I know."

~~{}~~

Life has a cruel sense of humor. Or fate. Whatever you wanted to call it. As he stood there in the burning and glaring sun of that beautiful day of July, he discovered he hated irony (when it was used against him).

Over twenty years ago, when the sun wouldn't have bothered him at all, it was raining. And now, today, as he stood there in front of the casket that held the one person who had been there during all those years… He wanted nothing more than rain to hide the tears in his eyes. Because there was no way he was going to be able to hold them back.

Four months. That was all he had had left with her after New York, after the quiet moment when they had finally said to each other what they'd always thought, what they'd always felt. And now she was gone.

Peggy was gone.

Pepper's reassuring warmth by his side caught his attention and he turned his head. She cocked hers to the side and raised a hand to his cheek gently, her thumb caressing the skin there, moving to his cheekbone. When she pulled back, he realized his fingers were wet. He _was_ crying. He couldn't believe he didn't even notice.

He looked back at the casket and saw flashes at the periphery of his vision. He frowned and turned his eyes in that direction to discover several journalists and paparazzi taking pictures again and again. Had they no shame? This was a funeral. Was taking pictures of Pepper, of him (he wasn't sure they associated Captain America and Steve Rogers just yet) that important to them?

He shook his head and turned his attention back to Peggy. Opposite him, on the other side of the coffin, Steve stood with his head down, his posture straight. Tony knew they had been talking during the past four months, reminiscing, learning about each other's life – Peggy had told him even if she hadn't gone into details (he respected that). He didn't want to imagine how the other man was probably feeling right then, knowing the last person still alive from his past was now… gone.

And Peggy wasn't just anyone either. She was his long lost love.

And she was whom Tony had the closest to a mother.

He closed his eyes tightly and held back a sob, his body shaking. Pepper tightened her grip on his arm and hand.

This was worse than he thought it would be. How could a simple meeting, a conversation between two strangers bored at a gala, have turned into something so deep, so important to them, to _him_? He loved her so much. He needed her, he needed that constant of his childhood, of his adulthood, of his _life_.

He suddenly realized Peggy was the only one apart from Jarvis he had left of his own past. Of the years before MIT, before Rhodey. The only one who was a witness to his quiet and desperate need for his father's approval at the very least, his love being too much of wishful thinking back then.

He felt a strong hand on his left shoulder and turned his head, opening his eyes. Rhodey smiled at him. "Hey," he whispered, "wasn't about to let you alone through that. I know how much she mattered to you."

"Thanks, Rhodey," he whispered back, managing a genuine grateful smile, before bringing his attention to the coffin again, only half hearing the priest talking.

He caught sight of Steve alone, glancing at him, at them and made a split decision. He let go of Pepper's hand and moved across the small gathering to stand beside the man. He put a hand on the soldier's shoulder who looked at him with surprised blue eyes, eyes that widened when they saw the tear tracks on his cheeks and the still gathering tears in his brown eyes.

"You shouldn't be alone in such a moment."

Steve smiled at him. "Thank you."

Tony nodded before straightening and turning back to the coffin. Together they stood, morning the last person from a past long gone. Saying goodbye to someone they both loved deeply in different ways. Getting closer by connecting through Peggy.

_I'll miss you, Peggy. I love you… mom._

* * *

**So? What do you think? **

**Review please!**

**AngelShep**


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